With Dansk Melodi Grand Prix just under a week away, today we bring you the first of a number of interviews with the participants of Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2015. Here is what Andy Roda had to say about his participation in this years contest:
May I start by saying a very big congratulations on making it through to the final of Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2015, how does it feel?
Thank you! I am excited, ready, proud yet humbled, and deeply appreciative for this opportunity.
You had your breakthrough into the music industry in 1999 with your first album “DISH”, what was it like for you to be able to say you had released your first album?
It’s funny how you sometimes go through moments in life, not always feeling connected to “ the moment”. In other words, while I was recording the album, I wasn’t fully embracing the moment. The more I’ve lived life, I’ve become conscious about the precious opportunities given my way, so as I’m looking back, I am feeling very proud that I could manifest that album. The fact that I am still living out my dream, being a musician, traveling the world, and getting to share and touch people with my music and life stories, feels like such a blessing.
Last year you were a backing singer for Basim who represented Denmark last year on home soil, what was it like to be performing in Copenhagen on the stage?
I was very happy and proud for Basim, and our team. It was truly a team effort. Although I have always been a solo artist, singing backup in various constellations, has been a tremendous learning experience for me as musician. I am a better (solo) artist because I have worked in so many forms, and singing for Denmark last year – in my home town Copenhagen, felt like such an amazing experience. An experience I will forever be grateful for.
Was it being a backing singer last year that made you decide to submit a song into this years Danish selection?
Actually, the network asked me several years in a row, but when LOVE IS LOVE came to be last Summer, through the magical reunion of my longtime friend Maria H. Jensen and I, and the fact that I had found new love, it all was a beautiful expression of LIFE, which came together in this song. The fact that we produced it together with Michael Parsberg (with whom I have worked with, singing lead on tour for Safri Duo) and his music partner Alexander Odden, who are also known as Pegboard Nerds, elevated the process even more. I had been working on finishing my new album (out soon) so the moment we wrote LOVE IS LOVE, I just KNEW that I was ready, and NOW was the perfect divine moment to share my song and message with Eurovision and the World too.
Your song in DMGP is called “Love is Love”, can you tell us more about it?
It’s a culmination of many things. But the most poignant one, is that I found love (again). To be able to wake up next to the person you adore in life, is a GIFT. I want everyone to experience this. Love is not always easy to find, so when you do, you want everyone to feel this LIFE FORCE move through you! The fact that I also lost my Aunt last year, who was like a second mother to me, also made be pause for a moment and reflect deeper on the meaning of life. Love is what we all come from. It’s the Source behind everything, and therefore it’s what connects us all. I grew up singing gospel in church, so LOVE IS LOVE is a song with a deeper spiritual meaning to me, which is why this is the PERFECT song to share on such a huge platform, because at the end of your life, this will be the most important thing you’ll remember: The love YOU SHARED and the LOVE YOU RECEIVED.
What can we expect from your performance at Dansk Melodi Grand Prix?
A beautiful poetic performance, with lots of intimacy and grandeur. Some of the best singers in Denmark supporting me. In perfect Eurovision style!
As a singer at the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest, besides Denmark, which was your favourite song in the contest and why?
To be honest, when you’re doing a show like this, there is very little time to focus on anything else, than your own performance. So many rehearsals and standby-get-ready-for-this-and-that. Like anytime I am about to get ready for stage, I’ve learned to leave the outside world and tune in – just like a sprinter getting ready for the 100 meter sprint, in order to summon the energy and channel it to the best of my ability. So I’m sorry I can’t answer that question profoundly.
Finally do you have anything you’d like to say to the readers of Eurovoix.com?
I would like to congratulate all the other contestants and wish us ALL well. This is a celebration of our gifts, so I thank everyone listening and viewing – for allowing me to share my message of love.
I hope “LOVE IS LOVE” will bless your hearts, and may the fact that I am living out a dream of mine, on stage, inspire YOU all to live our YOUR dream, and SHARE YOUR HEART. Openly and freely.
As my song says: “LOVE IS LOVE, NO ONE CAN JUDGE US, JUST FOLLOW YOUR HEART AND REMEMBER WE ONLY GOT ONE LIFE TO LIVE!”
We wish Andy Roda all the best for next Saturday’s Dansk Melodi Grand Prix final, you can watch the official music video for his song below:
Social Media:
